Talk about bitter Bergamot. This tea……….is ok. Maybe alright. I wish I could give it an astounding review because…..I love Wissotzky Tea, and I love Earl Grey. But, unfortunately, this has a very bitter flavor. And the scent was amazing, it had a nice, dark rich color, and it steeped well and EVERYTHING.

And then I taste it and it’s……eh. A little bit more sugar makes it a bit better, and maybe some cream might have helped. I’ll enjoy it enough to finish the box, but I don’t think I’ll be trying this brand of Earl Grey again. sigh It had so much promise!

I think I rate my teas way too high, I am noticing. :-) But when it comes to Earl Grey, I like the strong flavor, as long as it isn’t bitter, and so far, in all of my Earl Grey teas, they all deliver.

As of today, I have begun researching the Bergamot used to flavor the tea. I can now use a name to label the flavor. Yay! So this log isn’t going to be long, or descriptive. I love the flavor of Earl Grey, and my top favorite brands, this one included, give that flavor without being overly bitter, and a nice sweet that will allow for a little bit more sugar, but won’t require a lot to reach my desired sweetness pitch. This particular brand goes very well with cream, unlike one or two others I’ve tried, even though EG seems to be a tea good with cream/milk/etc. So I love this tea, I think it’s great, and I’m going to continue to enjoy it!

Preparation

As of right now, this is my all time favorite brand of Earl Grey. And there is a simple reason why: to me, it has the best and strongest flavor. Earl Grey is known for it’s flavor, hands down. So when I open up a container of Earl Grey, I expect to smell Earl Grey, first off, and second, have that scent remain or be strengthened when the tea bag meets the water. But this is for tasting, so let me get to that.

As I said before, this has an amazing flavor. It’s classic Earl Grey, with a very rich, smooth flavor. It’s got the right amount of sweetness, and with this brand, I find that I don’t have to sweeten it much, just one level spoonful, maybe a bit of honey if I’m in the mood. I don’t like cream with my tea, usually, and that’s the same with this one, but when I am in the mood for cream/milk/etc, this tea takes to it very well, especially this brand.

I have a lot more to say about this tea, but I don’t want to just ramble on. I love this tea, and I LOVE the round, string free, tea bags. A good tea with no hassle is a winner in my book!

Preparation

As you can see by my rating, I really like this tea. The first time I tasted it, I think I either steeped it wrong or sweetened too much or maybe both, and I drank it down fast so the taste wasn’t there. Now, I’m by myself, without any distractions, and I think I prepped it right this time. The taste of this tea is very delicate. The first taste is a light rose flavor, and then the sweet spicyness of chai, though this has been lowered compared to regular chai, to allow for the rose flavoring.

The rose flavor is just the right amount to be able to taste it, which lacks in a lot of other “rose” teas I’ve drank, and the definite chai flavor is still there. It’s got a nice sweetness too it, without being overpowering, and I used raw cane sugar, rather than the typical white. I’d say a tablespoon to about two tablespoons of that sugar, give or take based on personal preference, and you’re in the right zone. (I used some leftover sugar packets, so I don’t know how they equate to spoonfuls. You’ll have to test it to your own liking.) All in all, I think this is a fine rose tea, and I can see myself enjoying more in the future!

Note: My water temperature slider isn’t working. :( I don’t know what the typical kettle temperature is as far as the kettle SUPER whistling, but if water boils at 212 then maybe something above that? Sorry, unsure on this one.

To start, I must confess I have not mastered the art of properly warming hot milk and mixing it with chai tea. So I happen to enjoy my chai either with or without cream. Luckily, all the chais I’ve enjoyed are good by themselves. (I’m a grammar nazi, and that sounds wrong? I don’t know though.)

Tasting now. Yum. I adore Chai, and W tea has done it right. It’s got all the wondrous spices of Chai, all mixed together to produce that cinnamony, spicy glory. I haven’t researched the ingredients In Chai to be able to name each one I taste, but the cinnamon is there. It has a rich flavor, and it tingles nicely on the tongue. It’s a warming tea, no doubt. I really love this tea!

Best with a medium amount of sugar, or to your own preference. Cream or no cream, that is the question. I take it either way, so do as you like. It steeps best at the longer end of the scale, and I have yet to over-steep chai. Make a cup, curl up in your favorite spot with a book, and enjoy!

Preparation

Before I get into the taste of this tea, I want to talk about the color. This tea…when they say “Blood” orange, they mean it. The color has an orange color, most definitely, but it is red orange, to say the least. Put it in a black cup, and it looks a bit like blood. To avoid that creepy feeling, I’d stick to any other color of china, glass, mug, etc. So all in all, I love the color, minus the vampire scare. XD

Now onto taste: This is an orange lover’s tea. I happen to be an orange lover. :-) It has a VERY strong citrus-y taste, obviously, orange being the major one. You take a sip and you are greeted with a strong sour, which then quickly transforms to a sweet orange flavor. Proper sweetening to taste will change the speed of that transformation, or if there is a sour taste at all. I have just started using Agave Nectar, and about a tablespoon and a half (that’s guessing though, need to go back and measure exactly) gets a nice sweet without overpowering the tangy of the orange. So it’s a sweet-and-sour deal, and if you like orange, you’ll LOVE this tea.